The Soldier Who Didn't Know WWII Ended:

In 1974, a Japanese college dropout named Norio Suzuki heard a rumor that a Japanese soldier, a lieutenant named Hiroo Onoda, had been living on a remote island in the Philippines since the end of World War II - nearly 29 years after the war had ended. Initially, Suzuki dismissed the story as a hoax, but after conducting some research, he discovered that Onoda had indeed been missing since 1945 and was presumed dead in 1959.

Inspired by this wild legend, Suzuki decided to embark on a daring adventure to find the lost soldier and bring him home. Little did he know that he was about to uncover one of the most extraordinary stories of World War II, a tale of unwavering loyalty and delusion that would captivate the world.

The Early Life and Military Service of Hiroo Onoda

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Hiroo Onoda was born in 1922 in the town of Kamikawa in Japan's Wakayama prefecture. He grew up in a bustling family as the fifth of seven children and later embarked on a career as a salesman for a Japanese company operating in China. However, Onoda's destiny took an unexpected turn on December 7, 1941, when the Japanese Imperial forces attacked the United States Naval Base of Pearl Harbor, a catastrophic event that would embroil Japan in the Second World War.

In May 1942, at the age of 20, Onoda was drafted into the Japanese Army and assigned to the 61st Infantry Regiment in Wakayama. He was later transferred to the 28th Infantry Regiment and sent to the warfront in Nanchang, China. In December 1944, as American forces landed in the Philippines, Onoda's regiment was ordered to defend the small island of Lubang, where he would receive a battlefield promotion to the rank of second lieutenant.

The Fateful Order and the Retreat into the Jungle

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On February 28, 1945, a force of 50 American soldiers landed on Lubang Island, quickly overwhelming the Japanese troops. Onoda, now a newly appointed lieutenant, ordered a retreat into the mountains, changing the strategy to that of guerrilla warfare. Onoda's three-man cell, joined by Corporal Shimada and Private Kozuka, would continue to carry out guerrilla attacks against the American forces throughout the summer of 1945.

However, the soldiers were completely cut off from central military command and unaware of the catastrophic events that unfolded on August 6th and 9th, 1945, when the United States dropped atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, leading to Japan's surrender on August 15th. As the news of the surrender slowly reached the remote areas of the warfront, Onoda and his men dismissed it as a ruse, convinced that the war was still raging on.

The Soldier's Descent into Delusion

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Over the following years, Onoda and his dwindling squad of soldiers refused to accept that the war had ended, despite numerous attempts by the Japanese government and the local islanders to convince them. They dismissed leaflets, letters, and even a visit from Onoda's own brother as elaborate American propaganda, further entrenching themselves in their delusional beliefs.

As the years passed, the soldiers resorted to increasingly desperate measures to sustain themselves, stealing food and supplies from the local islanders and engaging in violent confrontations. They lived in a constant state of paranoia, convinced that the enemy was closing in on them and that Japan was on the verge of victory.